Bill Clinton Urged Spielberg Not To Boycott Olympic Ceremony

Jake Tapper
ABC's Political Punch

On Monday, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, called for President George W. Bush to refrain from personally participating in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summer Olympics to protest China's record on human rights.

The circumstances are dramatically different. But the dilemma of whether or not a public figure should lend his credibility to the China Olympics occurred last year, when firm director Steven Spielberg sought the opinion of former President Bill Clinton (among dozens of others) as to whether he should remain an "Overseas Artistic Director" for the opening and closing ceremonies for Olympics despite his serious concerns about China's role in the genocide in Darfur.